Almost 40 jobs as McAvoy unveils £10m expansion

Close to 40 jobs are to be created in Dungannon as part of a £10 million investment package announced by offsite bulding firm the McAvoy Group.

The company is a specialist in fast-track design and build projects comprising permanent buildings, extensions to existing buildings and hire modules.

The new investment, announced by Economy Minister Simon Hamilton, sees the business bid to consolidate its position as one of the UK’s top modular construction firms.

It now plans to grow turnover to £100 million by 2020 by growing its permanent modular construction division, renewing stock in its hire division and investing its IT infrastructure; all of which will lead to the creation of 38 new jobs.

The plan is supported by Invest NI through an emloyment grant of £198,000 and £135,000 under its skills growth programme.

“The McAvoy Group has been a leading player within the offsite modular construction sector in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland for a number of years,” said Mr Hamilton.

“The company is driving forward a robust growth strategy targeting new clients and procurement frameworks in the healthcare, education, residential and commercial markets.

“This multi-million pound investment will help the company to achieve its ambitious growth targets as well as contributing additional salaries to the local economy.”

The anticipated sales growth would also have a positive knock-on effect on the local construction industry supply chain which was vitally important to the local economy, he added.

“The McAvoy Group is a great example of a local company achieving significant growth as a result of their ongoing commitment to invest in innovation and skills development.”

The firm currently employs 170 people and has offices in the UK and Ireland. Twenty four of the 38 roles are in place in the company’s Dungannon and Lisburn offices.

MD Eugene Lynch said: “We have been successfully operating as a principal contractor in recent years and this strategic development is aimed at replicating our success in the education sector within other sectors.

“This investment is focused on growing our permanent modular construction division and consolidating the company as a key player in the UK market.

The company recently handed over an £18m project in Dagenham, London and is currently working on a £20m project for Lynch Hill school in Slough - one of the UK’s largest ever offsite modular constructed secondary schools.